The first goalie off the ice after the morning skate is typically the starter that night.

Most coaches don’t mind saying who’s starting. Carlyle has never fully explained why he plays that particular game of keeping everyone guessing.

And he seems almost Jekyll-and-Hyde-like when talking about his netminders.

On the one hand, Carlyle tries to convince reporters that we make too much about who the starting goalie is going to be: "You guys and the goalies, I'll tell you, you guys drive me crazy," said Carlyle.

On the other hand he provides answers — as he did in Winnipeg on the weekend — that remind everyone how important the position is: "The reality is unless you have quality goaltending, you don't have chance. You don't even have a starting point."

So while he believes goaltending is the most important position on the ice, he doesn't believe telling Leaf fans who the starter will be is all that big a deal.

In essence, he's turned the goalie story into a daily drama. If he'd say Friday who was starting Saturday — or even let his goalies communicate that information — it would be reduced to a note in most news items. By keeping it a secret, he's turned into a daily headline.

Maybe the trick is not asking him who the starter will be, but who the backup will be. It's worth a try.

At any rate, these days, it would be a shock if Jonathan Bernier did not start at least five of the next six games, heading into the Olympic break, given that there are no back-to-back games.

That said, there’s no telling with Carlyle sometimes.

“In the back of our minds, we know where the (goaltending) assignments will be coming,” said Carlyle. “Back-to-backs, it's pretty much a given (Bernier and Reimer split) right now, but that's not to say it will stay that way right through to the end of the season.”

JAMES REIMER: "Any time when you're not playing regularly, you're practising more. You take a different approach to practice. You always want to go out and work hard. When you're not playing, you stay out there, when normally you take that extra time to rest. You stay out there as long as possible and work on as many things as you can."

LB: Is a lot of it the mental part of the game?

JR: "A big part. The whole game is mental. It's all about trying to be in the right mindset and trying to stay positive. And knowing when you have the extra time to work on stuff, that's what you've got to do. You've got to work your butt off so when you get the nod, you’re as prepared as you can be.”

LB: Do you ever try to figure out when you're starting?

JR: "You think about it a little bit. It really doesn't do you any good. Sometimes when you think you have it figured out, then all of a sudden it switches up a little bit. You try not to spend too much time thinking about it. At the end of the day, you really don't have too much control. You just have to be ready when you get the nod."

Phil has always been Phil

Jets forward Blake Wheeler, one of Phil Kessel's best friends, offered a little insight into the Leafs sniper.

The two were teammates both at the University of Minnesota and early in their NHL career with the Boston Bruins.

Kessel has superstar potential for his shot and playmaking ability. But he's not an over-the-top personality. He evades, rather than seeks, the media spotlight.

Wheeler says he was always that way.

"He was a little bit quiet in college," said Wheeler. "It took him a little bit longer to open up to everyone. But once he did, he's got a great personality. He's a guy my wife and I love to be around.”

A small window into Kessel's personality opened up on 24/7: The Road to the Winter Classic. He showed off his downtown condo, teased Tyler Bozak, pointing out how much smaller Bozak's room was and the fact all Bozak likes to do is sit around and play video games.

At the end of the camera's time in his condo, Kessel pleaded with the camera crew not to make them look like idiots.

"I can't help but laugh at him every time he opens his mouth," says Wheeler. "If there's a firestorm, he always seems to be in the middle of it."

Wheeler, one of Winnipeg's most reliable scorers, is impressed with how Kessel plays.

"He's turned himself into one of the top playmakers, top scorers in the league. He's a guy that's tough to defend. I know our defencemen have a hell of time keeping up with him. It's fun to watch him go out there and do his thing. It's a lot more fun when you beat him and maybe outperform him."

Kessel and Wheeler will be teammates again on Team USA at the Winter Olympics. Wheeler hopes Kessel and James van Riemsdyk keep their chemistry going.

"They've been great this year. they seem to play off each other really well. They know where each other are on the ice. They can carry that chemistry over to Sochi."

Aiming for first

Joffrey Lupul sees first place in the division within the grasp of the Maple Leafs.

Wrapping up a four-game Western road trip on Saturday night — the Leafs went 2-1-1 — the Leafs come returned home for five games against Eastern Conference rivals (two games against the Lighting, two games against the Panthers and one against the Senators), with six games left until the two-week Olympic break.

"We want to set ourselves up so that coming back from the break we can challenge to win the division," said Lupul. "That's our mindset right now, looking at teams above us, not teams beneath us."

The Leafs find themselves in third place in the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of Montreal, and comfortably — but not too comfortably, say the players — in a playoff position.

"It's tough if you're looking at the standings too much," said Lupul. "Teams will play and jump us (on our off-days). It's not quite scoreboard watching time. We've got to focus on what we can do and keep getting better as a group.

"Our play right now is a lot better than it was three weeks ago. So we're happy about that."

The Leafs host Tampa on Tuesday, Florida in Thursday, Ottawa on Saturday, before a road trip to Florida and Tampa next week and a pre-Olympic break finale at home to Vancouver.

"It's going to be a good challenge," said goalie Jonathan Bernier. "We want to get as many points as possible before the break. Our main focus was to get back in the hunt. We've got to chip in and move forward."

Talking about moving up and actually doing it are, of course, two different animals. They are still routinely outshot. On Saturday, the Jets held a 32-28 shots advantage. Often the margin is much larger.

Their penalty killing is among the worst in the league (76.8 per cent as of Sunday, 29th of 30 teams). It is showing no signs of improving, although one saving grace may be that the team is taking fewer penalties lately.

And they've have ridden the scoring of their top line through this 6-1-1 run. The Maple Leafs’ top line of Phil Kessel (six goals, eight assists), James van Riemsdyk (four goals, three assists), and Tyler Bozak (three goals, four assists) combined for a total of 13 goals and 28 points in the last eight games. Kessel is historically streaky, and his good run could dry up any time.

"After you come on a trip like this, coming home, sometimes there can be a let-up," said Lupul. "We've got to be focused and not let that happen.

"Tampa is playing well and the team we're focusing on, trying to get to the top of the division," said Lupul. "We have a couple of big match-ups with them before the break, a chance to target a team ahead of us and try to move up."

The week ahead

TUESDAY, at home to Tampa. The Lighting have proved to be remarkably resilient without their star player, Steve Stamkos, who suffered a broken leg on Nov. 11. The Lightning were 12-5-0 before Stamkos got hurt and are 18-11-6 since. While the Canadian Olympian is on the mend and hoping to play in about a week, goalie Ben Bishop has been spectacular. But it has been rookie Tyler Johnson who has carried a significant load, offensively, centring Martin St. Louis in Stamkos's absence. Undrafted and now 23, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound centre leads all rookie forwards in ice time, averaging 18 minutes, 40 seconds of ice time, per game, while no other rookie forward averages more than 17:01. He is tied with the far-more-heralded Nathan MacKinnon with 34 points for the scoring lead among rookies. The Leafs haven't played the Lightning this year.

THURSDAY, at home to Florida. The Leafs lost the first meeting between the two teams, 3-1, part of Toronto's December swoon. The Panthers have cooled off since their 7-1-0 run in mid-December. Toronto is Florida's third stop on a four-game road trip, which ends a tough grind of seven of eight on the road. The Panthers’ top rookie, and top scorer — Aleksander Barkov — is out with an injury. That their top scorer has 24 points on eight goals and 16 assists proves the obvious: Florida is one of the lowest scoring teams in the NHL.

SATURDAY, at home to Ottawa. The Battle of Ontario closes this three-game home stand. The Leafs have won both games so far, both in shootouts. The Senators played a solid stretch of hockey starting Dec. 23 when the went 7-2-0, but they've stumbled lately, having trouble keeping the puck out of the net. They wrap up a five-game road trip on Tuesday in Columbus, return home for a game Thursday against Tampa, then head right back on the road for a three-game trip, starting with the Leaf game.

Stadium series

The NHL has managed to expand its outdoor game format this year with the introduction of the Stadium Series, without taking any of the lustre away from its keynote in-season event, the Winter Classic.

The visuals Saturday from L.A.'s Dodger Stadium — an ice rink surrounded by green grass and a beach volleyball court — were stunning. The ice there was apparently better than the ice at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. But the fan experience seemed just as enjoyable in the Bronx, where there's another game Wednesday, as it was in L.A.

There's another game at Chicago's Soldier Field between the Blackhawks and Penguins, and the Heritage Classic on March 2 in Vancouver, between the Canucks and Senators.

The key to continued success, as far as the NHL is concerned, is to keep the event local, tap in to civic pride and make the event a must-participate event in the local calendar.

By the time the outdoor games wind up this season, 18 NHL teams will have played at least one outdoor game. The Penguins and New York Rangers will have played in three.

That means there are plenty of markets still to be tapped in the 30-team league. And that includes southern markets, given how well the ice held up in L.A.

Next year, Washington will host the Winter Classic and the league is talking about scaling back the Stadium Series to four outdoor games, rather than six. Colorado is pulling to host one, wanting the Red Wings as the opponent.

Poor Ben

Poor Ben Scrivens. He thought he might get to play in the Winter Classic as a Maple Leaf. The lockout cost him the first chance, and a trade to L.A. cost him second. Then he thought he might have had a chance to play in the Stadium Series at Dodger Stadium. A trade to Edmonton ruined that.

Trade rumours du jour

With the Olympic break coming soon, so does a roster freeze. A lot of teams would like to make deals in advance of the Olympics because there’s not much time to do it after the Olympics. The trade deadline is March 5.

The Washington Capitals’ Martin Erat and Michal Neuvirth have asked for trades.

Phoenix forward Radim Vrbata.

Tampa defenceman Keith Aulie.

Dot dot dot

Former Leafs defenceman Michael Kostka — now a Chicago Blackhawk — played his first NHL game as a forward, moving wing on a line with Kris Versteeg and centre Michal Handzus to replace Bryan Bickell. ... There are six active players who have posted three or more goals in a game whose fathers also registered hat tricks in the NHL: Eric Nystrom (and his father, Bob); Sam Gagner (Dave); Ryan Malone (Greg); Zach Parise (J.P.), Paul Stastny (Peter); and Alexander Steen (Thomas). ... Red Wings G Jonas Gustavsson is 5-0-0 in his past five appearances, his second five-game winning streak of the season (also Nov. 21-Dec. 6). … Avalanche forward Ryan O’Reilly scored his 19th goal of the season (48 GP), besting his previous career high of 18 set in 2011-12 (81 GP). ... Saturday’s shutout loss to Buffalo marked the third time in six games that Penguins centre Sidney Crosby has been held pointless. Crosby, however, continues to lead the league in scoring with 74 points (27 goals, 49 assists) and his team is 35-5-2 this year when he gets at least a point. When he’s blanked, the Pens are just 2-9. ... The Rangers became the first team to win two regular-season outdoor NHL games, following their 3-2 victory in the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic. Four other teams — the Red Wings (1-0-1), Canadiens (1-1-0), Penguins (1-1-0) and Flyers (0-1-1) — have played in multiple regular-season outdoor NHL games, but none has more than one victory.

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